Birdsong Cafe, McHenry, IL

Overview

Birdsong Cafe, McHenry, IL

by kzfisherman

People are drawn to provide habitat for wildlife in their yards for various reasons. Here is a homeowner who discovered this passion through her love of birds. On their quarter acre, this family is doing an impressive job providing food, shelter, water, and nesting habitat for their avian visitors. Her plantings of native trees, shrubs, and flowers also have the added benefit of supporting native pollinators, such as bees, butterflies, and other ecologically-critical insects. Read on to learn more about how Lisa Maier is creating habitat in her suburban neighborhood.

What work has been done to improve this site for birds and other wildlife? How long did it take?

My mate and I moved into our house about two years ago and the first big project we wanted to tackle was the yard. Being an avid birder, my idea was to focus on plants that would attract birds. I had become particularly interested in native plants a few years ago on a bird walk after talking to a devoted native gardener.

Are there any tough decisions that had to be made regarding its management? How were they handled?

I think the biggest initial challenge was deciding which existing plants to keep and which to get rid of. We had a number of non-native species in our yard but we didn’t want to eliminate everything at once. When deciding what non-natives to keep, I focused on what attracted the most birds (like our Mulberry and Weigela) and what provided good cover for birds (like our Japanese Maple and Crabapple). Many people also started giving me plants from their yards and it’s hard to say no to a plant! I also had to dwindle down my very large list of natives I wanted to plant, so as to leave some room for new species in the future.